Sink or swim - first day on the job

I started a job very recently at a boutique financial advisory firm as an analyst and feel very lucky to be employed. My first day, however, was like being immediately thrown to a pack of wolves - I was handed a major project and given a vague set of instructions. My boss implied it was "my job to figure it out", meaning I had to sort through an Excel workbook with literally 25+ sheets of valuations/models and input the correct figures, make sure the numbers look alright, etc. The sheer amount of data to sort through was almost paralyzing, but I plan on working my ass off to get this done no matter how long it takes.

My question, is has anyone else been through the same sink-or-swim experience their first day or even week? Is it typical to go through what I've gone through - as in they give you a ton of responsibility right from the start and expect you to know, or at least figure out, your shit?

Just need some advice and encouragement here...I've been 1.5 years removed from college and in that time lost countless brain cells working in brokerage.

 

Not everyone else is in your shoes. Most small places give you lots of work but also offer help, others train you before you get major responsibilities (BBs)...hopefully in your case, even if you don't do everything perfectly they will understand, but they might be expecting more from you since you are not straight out of college. Good luck...let us know how it works out.

Do what you want not what you can!
 

That is how it was for me in my first days of Equity Research. There was none of the training that hear about on these forums. I was just given oil and gas models and told to do them and to not F it up. What is really fun is when you present it and have a number of things wrong - sorry to break that to you.

The harder you hit the learning curve the fast you get over it. Your boss will likely hit you hard on any mistakes you make, so be ready for it and take all bitching as the opportunity to better yourself and your work. You will not be fired right out of the cage, so remember that too if you can't figure something out.

You will feel like the shit in a few months when you can breeze through 25+sheets in a short period with no mistakes. Believe me, it will happen and you will get there.

 

A lot of the job is just "figuring stuff out." That's one of the things that separates good analysts from great analysts -- the ability to figure things out quickly and teach yourself as you go. You'll undoubtedly run into tons of new concepts throughout your years -- this won't be the first time you're staring at a document dumbfounded as to how to proceed.

CompBanker’s Career Guidance Services: https://www.rossettiadvisors.com/
 

It will probably take you a few more months before you become truly proficient with Excel and PPT ...as well as learn where everything is - how to use CapitalIQ, bloomberg and other research tools appropriately.

Just try to work efficiently as possible and always print out and check your work. Does everything line up? do all of the numbers make sense? You don't want to feel so rushed that you start handing in work with mistakes.

triple check and good luck. I've been there and it's not fun...in 6 months you will be a machine. -Patrick

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Look to your peers and near-peers - those folks who are 1 year ahead of you and are doing really well in the firm. They're the better folks to approach with "dumb" questions. They remember the feeling you have and are also closest to the kind of work you're being asked to do.

Here's a good article on why peers are so useful http://www.gottamentor.com/viewAdvice.aspx?a=333

Andrea Gotta Mentor http://www.gottamentor.com

Gotta Mentor Connect to the Advice & People You Need to Achieve Your Career Goals
 

When someone has asked you to do something a good tip is to repeat to them what they asked you to do and don't leave the discussion until you fully understand the task.

If you're feeling overwhelmed... this is going to sound lame, but just break the pieces down into smaller tasks. Do the most obvious first. Then, take some time to think the other things through and perhaps you'll figure it out. If you are still confused and simply don't understand what the associate wants, don't be afraid to go back and ask him to clarify. Some associates simply explain things horribly. If you go back and ask the associate to clarify and he/she gets annoyed... they're a bad associate and the likelihood is that they don't even know what they really need. Does this make sense?

Listen, some things for me are intuitive and so when I ask an analyst for something I sometimes forget that what's intuitive for me, may not be intuitive for them. So I'm learning to give better direction to others. Plus, when you explain things to others well, it reinforces your skill at doing something too. Anyways, I appreciate someone more if they just come up to me and are straightforward when they don't understand something and didn't waste their time or my time for that matter by staring at the wall.

 

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